i894. THE ORIGIN OF SPECIES. 259 



or is putting the cart before the horse. A seedling survives solely because 

 it is vigorous. This is capable of proof, and whatever flowers it may 

 subsequently bear, it must be contented with them, whether they be 

 the " best " or not for fertilisation or otherwise. In corroboration of 

 the above, I would add my own experience with small and large 

 seeds. These show that the better nourished have a much greater 

 chance of starting and crowding out the rest by growing into larger 

 plants, and that if small seeds be selected for some years, they either 

 die out altogether or a tiny race of beings is for a time procured. 

 Hence, for the word "fittest," i.e., morphologically, I would sub- 

 stitute "strongest," i.e., constitutionally. 



I note here ihat Mr, Willis says (Natural Science, v., p. 240) 

 that " Natural Selection has to be (f/sproved." No one, however, can 

 be called upon to " prove a negative." It is for Darwinists to prove that 

 the Origin of Species does really require the aid of Natural Selection. 



On the other hand, it is for me to prove that the Origin of Species 

 can take care of itself ; in other words, to establish the truth of Mr. 

 H. Spencer's observation : " Under new conditions the organism 

 immediately begins to undergo certain changes in structure, fitting it 

 for its new conditions,"/ and that what is true for the individual is true 

 for its offspring, the result being, to adopt Darwin's words, a new 

 sub-variety without the aid of Natural Selection is produced. 



I will now give illustrations of " definite " and " indefinite " 

 variations. In 1847, Professor J. Buckman sowed seed of the wild 

 parsnip in the garden of the Agricultural College at Cirencester. 

 The seedlings began to vary, but in the same way, though in different 

 degrees. By selecting seed from the best rooted plants, the acquired 

 "somatic" characters of an enlarged root, glabrous leaves, etc., 

 became fixed and hereditary ; and " The Student," as he called it, 

 having been " improved " by Messrs. Sutton & Sons, is still regarded 

 as " the best in the trade." This is definite variation, according to 

 Darwin's definition, for those weeded out did not differ from the 

 selected, morphologically, except in degree, the variations towards 

 improvement not being quite fast enough to entitle them to survive. 

 M. Carriere raised the radish of cultivation, i?a^/w«2« sativns, L., from 

 the wild species R.Raphanistnni, L., and moreover found that the turnip- 

 rooted form resulted from growing it in a heavy soil, and the long-rooted 

 one in a light soil.*^ Pliny records the same fact as practised in 

 Greece in his day, saying that the " male " (turnip form) could be 

 produced from the " female " (long form), by growing it in "a 

 cloggy soil." Both forms are now, of course, hereditary by seed. 



When a plant has been long cnUivated, the relatively fixed nature, 

 characteristic of most wild forms, generally breaks down ; and the 

 seeds from one and the same individual plant cannot always be 



■^ " Factors of Evolution." 



8 This has been corroborated by M. Languet with the carrot. Soc. Roy. et. Cent. 

 d'Agncult, 2nd ser., vol. ii., 1846-7, p. 539. 



S 2 



